This invention relates generally to the field of real-time systems and specifically to diagnosing error conditions in high-speed communication systems.
In many applications of real-time systems there is a need to identify conditions of coupled external systems. For example, in a high-speed communication system the characteristics of the communications channel such as length of the link, noise, and signal attenuation and distortion may be important factors affecting the quality of the system. There may be cases where channel impairments are so drastic that it is not possible to establish communication between or within systems. Quickly identifying the conditions resulting from a failure and the possible causes of channel impairments would allow the user of the communication system to take remedial action thus minimizing costs. Identifying and solving the problems that led to the failure would be greatly facilitated if the communication system itself had enough intelligence to diagnose the cause of a failure and report the cause to the user.